gundam 29-31
Aug. 7th, 2025 09:16 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
lizardjayI've decided to start writing up episode-by-episode thoughts about Gundam since I enjoyed doing that for Utena so much... the problem here is that I'm already 2/3 done with the OG Gundam series, but such is life :D so I will be starting at episode 29.
OVERALL THOUGHTS UNTIL NOW
Wow, Gundam is good.
It's just enjoyable! What else can I say? Sometimes they come up with a stupid new robot configuration and try to make it make sense (why do they keep combining the Gundam with the external armor fighter plane thing... I think it's supposed to increase the power of the fighter or something but Sayla kills mobile suits just fine anyway and the benefits of having two separate machines who can cover each other vs one just seems better----), and Zeon comes up with the ugliest mobile suit you've ever seen, and you have to take something called a Z'Gok seriously, but this has no bearing on how good the show is.
Gundam is kind of like slice of life, if your life sucked.... I recognize this doesn't sound appealing. But it's not like there's plot arcs really; sure, things happen, and the White Base has travelled all over the planet and finally back to space, and I guess there's an overall mystery with Char and Sayla, and presumably the show will see the end of the war, but it's just so episodic. War Is Hell And Also It's The Same Thing All The Time.
I should mention that my Gundam knowledge is very little. For the beginning of the show I was actually simultaneously watching the latest series, Gquuux (no idea how many U's are in that), which was pretty funny because it's an AU that diverges in OG Gundam episode 1. From this I understood: psychic powers are real. Char is a big deal. Zeon did not win the war in the main timeline. The Zeon internal political situation is weird. And that's pretty much it! I also knew that Anthy from Utena is in part based on a girl named Lalah who I assume is in this show, though I guess she could be later in the series.
Also, people apparently complain about the animation but I don't see the problem? Sure sometimes the background loops stutter a bit, and people occasionally wiggle a little when they talk, and they recycle shots. But this has no effect on the overall quality of how good and comprehensible the battles can be, and how there are fun character moments in the animation, and some of the frankly gorgeous shots they do put in. The animation is not bad or ugly. (It DOES seem maybe a little difficult to make a visually appealing AMV, but that's a problem for later me. I am perhaps spoiled by fancy fast animation.)
WOMEN IN GUNDAM
Maybe this was unfair of me but I kind of assumed there'd be no significant women? Obviously it's not equal but there are so many women!! Fraw Bow (why did they name her that AND spell it like that???)! Mirai! Sayla! Matilda! Kai's spy friend! Ramba Ral's Wife (I just looked her up and her name was Hamon... I didn't remember). I guess we can count Icelina and Kycilia too.
I have heard that perhaps things are not so great for women, either later in the show or in the series as a whole... I guess we'll see. I don't think it's a huge issue so far that all the enemy women (except Kycilia.... for now?) end up dying, because all the men end up dying too, except Char. Partially because he kills them.
SAYLA AND CHAR
I'm waiting patiently for the reveal of their whole deal. For now I am assuming it's an Anastasia situation where they were children of some previous royal family (because Sayla got called princess by... Ramba Ral?) who were presumed missing or dead. The kids got separated from each other, Sayla was maybe adopted or something, and Char decided to go Super Undercover and kill all the Zabis, for.... some reason. Presumably the Zabis killed the royal family, but secretly so that people didn't hate them. Or maybe the royal family was generally hated, but Ramba Ral was something of a loyalist? Idk. I'm not thinking about it too hard.
EPISODE 29: TRAGEDY IN JABURO
Here we meet Matilda's fiance, Woody. (Matilda tragically died a few episodes ago, in a move that the episode preview completely gave away. The episode preview man does not believe in spoilers.) Unfortunately he is not long for this world because Char kills him.
My friend M: I keep forgetting that Gundam is straightforwardly about the horrors of war... I was expecting that we'd get a proper buildup before someone gets killed off.
Me: I literally said when he got introduced "I wonder if he'll survive this episode" :D
I am of course sorry for Woody but I cheered when Char finally got into a mobile suit. It has been one hundred years. Garma died in episode TEN. It has been far too long with no Char, and even when he got back he's just been standing around carefully getting all his subordinates killed. Get that man in mortal peril!!!
However: wasn't Char in Africa just a couple episodes ago? The whole reason we had a battle literally last episode was because Char sent Boone after the White Base, because he couldn't leave Africa. I guess he has new orders now?
I wonder if it took so long for us to see Char in action again because there were no red mobile suits for him to use...
EPISODE 30: A WISH OF WAR ORPHANS
A child episode! Also, they finally give our crew military ranks. They blatantly give Amuro a higher rank than Kai, I guess because he does more. Even though by this point Kai is probably an equally good pilot, his mobile suit is simply not as cool. So it goes.
Char's whole team: *wearing black bodysuits for stealth*
Char: my fancy red outfit is just fine.
Char's subordinates just tied the kids up and left them in the same room as all the bombs. I thought they might hesitate about the kids and... idk, take them with them? Oh well. Kill Those Kids.
Zeon, stop using time bombs. It hasn't been working. Also, we are SO lucky these aren't the same type of bombs as a while ago when they stuck bombs on the Gundam. Those needed a special device to send an electrical pulse or something, or else they'd explode early.
Char's name was Casval.... and did we know Sayla was Artesia? I don't remember.
EPISODE 31: A DECOY IN SPACE
I found it very funny here that Sayla and Char are misdjudging each other:
Sayla: Could Char be the pilot of this new mobile armor... I'm not sure..... how can I shoot it.... (Char is not in the mobile armor)
Char: lol my sister definitely wouldn't have gotten back on the White Base, she's not the military type AND she knows I'm on the other side (Sayla is actively shooting and killing people)
And this is just two episodes after Amuro and Char saw each other (in mobile suits) for the first time in like 20 episodes and instantly were like "I Recognize You..."
This episode features my favorite mobile suit model, the Dom. They have such cute faces :D though in general I really like the Zeon single eye design for most of their suits. (Their architecture and ships though... why are those always designed with weird spires? They look like a video game Villain's Castle or something.) Also, the Doms have little skirts which are fun.
In other news, Mirai is engaged D: I feel bad for both her and Bright. Also we have a new romantic (???) interest in Sleggar. That's probably spelling it wrong. I can't look him up because then I might see if he dies; I am hoping he dies maybe next episode but who knows, maybe he lives forever. This is kind of cruel of me to hope for, because I enjoyed when Kai was obnoxious, but I just don't like Sleggar. I understand why they brought him in though, to fill the Annoying void that Kai has left behind (temporarily?) since he's behaving so well after his spy friend's death.
I don't remember if it was in this episode or last, but when everyone got their health checks I wondered if they were finally going to talk about Newtypes. Amuro was talking about them testing his brain waves... But they didn't mention it. Maybe they won't even tell us about psychic people in the whole show, just in the following series?
Wow, Gundam is good.
It's just enjoyable! What else can I say? Sometimes they come up with a stupid new robot configuration and try to make it make sense (why do they keep combining the Gundam with the external armor fighter plane thing... I think it's supposed to increase the power of the fighter or something but Sayla kills mobile suits just fine anyway and the benefits of having two separate machines who can cover each other vs one just seems better----), and Zeon comes up with the ugliest mobile suit you've ever seen, and you have to take something called a Z'Gok seriously, but this has no bearing on how good the show is.
Gundam is kind of like slice of life, if your life sucked.... I recognize this doesn't sound appealing. But it's not like there's plot arcs really; sure, things happen, and the White Base has travelled all over the planet and finally back to space, and I guess there's an overall mystery with Char and Sayla, and presumably the show will see the end of the war, but it's just so episodic. War Is Hell And Also It's The Same Thing All The Time.
I should mention that my Gundam knowledge is very little. For the beginning of the show I was actually simultaneously watching the latest series, Gquuux (no idea how many U's are in that), which was pretty funny because it's an AU that diverges in OG Gundam episode 1. From this I understood: psychic powers are real. Char is a big deal. Zeon did not win the war in the main timeline. The Zeon internal political situation is weird. And that's pretty much it! I also knew that Anthy from Utena is in part based on a girl named Lalah who I assume is in this show, though I guess she could be later in the series.
Also, people apparently complain about the animation but I don't see the problem? Sure sometimes the background loops stutter a bit, and people occasionally wiggle a little when they talk, and they recycle shots. But this has no effect on the overall quality of how good and comprehensible the battles can be, and how there are fun character moments in the animation, and some of the frankly gorgeous shots they do put in. The animation is not bad or ugly. (It DOES seem maybe a little difficult to make a visually appealing AMV, but that's a problem for later me. I am perhaps spoiled by fancy fast animation.)
WOMEN IN GUNDAM
Maybe this was unfair of me but I kind of assumed there'd be no significant women? Obviously it's not equal but there are so many women!! Fraw Bow (why did they name her that AND spell it like that???)! Mirai! Sayla! Matilda! Kai's spy friend! Ramba Ral's Wife (I just looked her up and her name was Hamon... I didn't remember). I guess we can count Icelina and Kycilia too.
I have heard that perhaps things are not so great for women, either later in the show or in the series as a whole... I guess we'll see. I don't think it's a huge issue so far that all the enemy women (except Kycilia.... for now?) end up dying, because all the men end up dying too, except Char. Partially because he kills them.
SAYLA AND CHAR
I'm waiting patiently for the reveal of their whole deal. For now I am assuming it's an Anastasia situation where they were children of some previous royal family (because Sayla got called princess by... Ramba Ral?) who were presumed missing or dead. The kids got separated from each other, Sayla was maybe adopted or something, and Char decided to go Super Undercover and kill all the Zabis, for.... some reason. Presumably the Zabis killed the royal family, but secretly so that people didn't hate them. Or maybe the royal family was generally hated, but Ramba Ral was something of a loyalist? Idk. I'm not thinking about it too hard.
EPISODE 29: TRAGEDY IN JABURO
Here we meet Matilda's fiance, Woody. (Matilda tragically died a few episodes ago, in a move that the episode preview completely gave away. The episode preview man does not believe in spoilers.) Unfortunately he is not long for this world because Char kills him.
My friend M: I keep forgetting that Gundam is straightforwardly about the horrors of war... I was expecting that we'd get a proper buildup before someone gets killed off.
Me: I literally said when he got introduced "I wonder if he'll survive this episode" :D
I am of course sorry for Woody but I cheered when Char finally got into a mobile suit. It has been one hundred years. Garma died in episode TEN. It has been far too long with no Char, and even when he got back he's just been standing around carefully getting all his subordinates killed. Get that man in mortal peril!!!
However: wasn't Char in Africa just a couple episodes ago? The whole reason we had a battle literally last episode was because Char sent Boone after the White Base, because he couldn't leave Africa. I guess he has new orders now?
I wonder if it took so long for us to see Char in action again because there were no red mobile suits for him to use...
EPISODE 30: A WISH OF WAR ORPHANS
A child episode! Also, they finally give our crew military ranks. They blatantly give Amuro a higher rank than Kai, I guess because he does more. Even though by this point Kai is probably an equally good pilot, his mobile suit is simply not as cool. So it goes.
Char's whole team: *wearing black bodysuits for stealth*
Char: my fancy red outfit is just fine.
Char's subordinates just tied the kids up and left them in the same room as all the bombs. I thought they might hesitate about the kids and... idk, take them with them? Oh well. Kill Those Kids.
Zeon, stop using time bombs. It hasn't been working. Also, we are SO lucky these aren't the same type of bombs as a while ago when they stuck bombs on the Gundam. Those needed a special device to send an electrical pulse or something, or else they'd explode early.
Char's name was Casval.... and did we know Sayla was Artesia? I don't remember.
EPISODE 31: A DECOY IN SPACE
I found it very funny here that Sayla and Char are misdjudging each other:
Sayla: Could Char be the pilot of this new mobile armor... I'm not sure..... how can I shoot it.... (Char is not in the mobile armor)
Char: lol my sister definitely wouldn't have gotten back on the White Base, she's not the military type AND she knows I'm on the other side (Sayla is actively shooting and killing people)
And this is just two episodes after Amuro and Char saw each other (in mobile suits) for the first time in like 20 episodes and instantly were like "I Recognize You..."
This episode features my favorite mobile suit model, the Dom. They have such cute faces :D though in general I really like the Zeon single eye design for most of their suits. (Their architecture and ships though... why are those always designed with weird spires? They look like a video game Villain's Castle or something.) Also, the Doms have little skirts which are fun.
In other news, Mirai is engaged D: I feel bad for both her and Bright. Also we have a new romantic (???) interest in Sleggar. That's probably spelling it wrong. I can't look him up because then I might see if he dies; I am hoping he dies maybe next episode but who knows, maybe he lives forever. This is kind of cruel of me to hope for, because I enjoyed when Kai was obnoxious, but I just don't like Sleggar. I understand why they brought him in though, to fill the Annoying void that Kai has left behind (temporarily?) since he's behaving so well after his spy friend's death.
I don't remember if it was in this episode or last, but when everyone got their health checks I wondered if they were finally going to talk about Newtypes. Amuro was talking about them testing his brain waves... But they didn't mention it. Maybe they won't even tell us about psychic people in the whole show, just in the following series?
